From entertainment to something
by QuietNerdyThing
Summary: A cold stormy winter day in New York, a bored god and a clumsy student. Will the trickster find his entertainment? Will the student survive the day? And if she does, will SHIELD disturb the peace? Why am I even asking these question?
1. Chapter 1

_So, erm, hi there :) This was just something that popped into my head and demanded to be written. I didn't follow any intention whatsoever and just went with the flow (doesn't sound as good as go with the flow, damn :D) so you should just do the same :) Have fund and.. stuff._

New York in winter was a beautiful sight but could also be very dangerous and, most important, extremely cold. The trees and buildings all wore a thick coat of white snow, threatening to bury the people underneath and the people themselves wore thick coats, scarves, gloves and hats in order to keep the cold away, but with little to no success. So all the humans walked as fast as the wind blowing in their faces and the ice on the ground allowed to get into the warmth of one of the houses.

Sitting on the rooftop of a skyscraper he scanned his surroundings and watched the people on the street. He was bored to no extent and longed for an interesting event to occur but the humans freezing on the street weren't interesting at all. He was about to leave the roof when something caught his eyes. In his peripheral view he saw a little human slipping on the ice and due to his boredom he found entertainment in this rather low kind of comedy. The human staggered back to its feet and, thinking the show was over, he wanted to turn away again but, oh, was he mistaken. It happened again. Same turn of events. Slipping, falling, standing back up. And again. And again. The raven haired god fell into hysterious laughter and kept watching the poor little ant.

Skye Holmes really was unlucky today. First the metro didn't drive due to an accident on the line, then she was late for her classes at university and, therefore, missed an important about British literature which, according to the professor, was very important for the exams and finally the heavy snow storm totally surprised her on her way home. And there she was now, at Central Park, making a complete fool of herself. But, since she was in New York, nobody had pity enough to help her. How she wished to be back in London, right now. There at least three nice people would have offered her help by now, but America obviously was different. She fell again, landed on her butt and sighed in defeat, her books scattered across the ground.

Loki grew tired of watching the human falling to the ground, but when it didn't try to get up anymore he wondered if it was dead. He looked closer seeing it still breathed and looked pretty defeated. Loki Laufeyson almost felt pity for the tiny human woman and, also due to his boredom, he decided to help her.

Sitting on the freezing ground, she gathered her books together and put them back in her bag, trying to keep them in there this time. Grabbing the last book she sighed again and began the, hopefully, last attempt to get up on her feet again. Half way up she felt her left foot slip away again but this time Skye, or more precisely Skye's butt, didn't feel the hard contact with the ice, but a firm grip on her right arm. The girl looked up and directly into deep green eyes filled with a mixture of pity and disgust. A shiver ran down her back and she instinctively tried to get away from the black-haired tall man in the dark coat.

Annoyed he tightened his grip around the girls arm. Couldn't she just accept his help like the little bug she was? Humans were so stupid, but then again, she was a smart girl to know he was dangerous. Nevertheless, he hauled her back up to her feet and loosened his grip a bit, seeing how it seemed to hurt her. But now that he had decided that this human shall be his new entertainment he wasn't going to let her run away. The god decided to try the nice polite way first and so he asked, seemingly concerned, if she was okay.

"Are you alright?" The stranger still holding Skye's arm asked politely. She could do nothing but stare at him, wondering where the danger in his eyes went. They seemed nice by now, but she knew what she saw, so she wasn't going to trust this man. Realising she was staring at him, which her British manners forbade her, she hurried to answer him: "Oh, uh… I'm okay, thank you very much, sir."

"Why certainly! How could I leave a young woman in need of help to her own", he laughed and smiled slightly. Skye was a little startled to hear him speaking with a British-ish accent. If he really was from the Isles she could see why he of all people would help her. Yes, it was a stereotype, but obviously it was correct this time. Deep in her thoughts she didn't see the bemused look he gave her.

This girl sure was entertaining. Loki loved to make people feel uncomfortable or at a loss of words and he surely managed both this time. But as the silence kept on he slowly grew bored again so he broke it. "May I help you get into the warmth?" Startled she looked at him again and searched for the right words.

"That would be very nice of you, but I don't want to cause you any trouble." There were her British manners again, finally. The man smirked and assured her it would be his pleasure, he actually insisted to accompany her, so how could she refuse?

There they were now, the tall man and the tiny woman, on their way to the woman's little flat. Since the metro still didn't drive they walked the whole way and furthermore, since the ground was covered in ice not only in Central Park it was a slow journey.

Again she slipped on the icy ground and again the tall man caught her before she could land on the rigid ground. He grew quite tired of this so he decided to put an end to this aggravation and scooped the girl up in his arms. The girl protested after a brief moment of shock but the god's hands were too strong for her. "What are you doing? Put me down this instant or I…"

"Or you what? See, you are falling every few seconds and it is getting quite annoying. So let me just carry you to make this easier, little lady."

He taunted her and she knew it but at the same time he was kind of right. And she knew that too. But still, it was irritating to be carried just like that by a man you didn't even know the name of. Which brought her to the next point.

"What is your name, anyway?"

He looked down at her, while he carried her bridal style und smirked again. "My name? Wouldn't it be common sense to introduce oneself before asking for someone's name?"

"I, uh, sorry, I didn't mean to… My name is Skye. Skye Holmes. So may I ask yours now?" After stuttering at first she got a hold of herself. It wasn't that she was dumb, she could be eloquent and versatile, she just wasn't that good with people, especially people she didn't know. Hell, Skye was even too anxious to talk to anyone at university, let alone live in the dorms with a roommate. That was why she worked when she wasn't at university. To pay her rent. To stay in her little personal bubble, where she didn't have to be cautious or anxious.

"That's how it ought to be, isn't it? Pleasure to meet you Miss Holmes, my name is Loki." That statement was accompanied by a sinister grin and a spark in his eyes while Skye's mind worked. Loki? Where did she hear that before?

"Norse mythology… You mean Loki like the Norse god of mischief? Like, in Thor and Loki of Asgard?"

"So you figured it out. I'm impressed… no not really, I made it quite easy, didn't I? But now that you know, we don't have to waste our time with this tedious walk anymore." And that was the last thing he said before they vanished into thin air.

They reappeared in pitch-black darkness. The air was cold and the atmosphere threatening. Then suddenly a small green light appeared before her and as her eyes adjusted she saw it danced on Loki's palm, who was still holding her in his arms.

"Where are we?" Skye looked up at the tall god and into his emerald eyes. There was a sinister amusement in them that told her she actually didn't want to know. But she did.

"This is, as you mortals would probably put it, my secret hide-out." He said with a smirk and put the little woman down on her feet. She swayed slightly, as an aftermath of the teleporting, and took two cautious steps away from the God of Mischief.

"Wait, what?" Skye was startled. Why would he bring her to his secret hide-out and, more importantly, where exactly was his secret hide-out and, furthermore, why was it so damn dark here? The last question she obviously had asked aloud as Loki said casually "Wouldn't want to spoil the surprise, would I?"

"Ok, surprise, yay. Would it hurt you to turn on the lights now, or shall I fall over whatever you have in here first?" Why the bloody hell was she so hilariously dumb-brave? It definitely wasn't brave-brave. Probably being unable to see his menacing glare gave her this stupid-courage. Pretty dumb actually.

"Sassy, are we?" Loki Laufeyson asked and Skye could literally hear the smirk forming on his lips. "But as you wish. You may be allowed to see." And with that a blinding light appeared in Skye's view, which made her unable to see anything – again. Slowly her eyes adjusted to the new circumstances and she could finally see her surroundings. And it was… Well, just a normal apartment. She looked at her kidnapper. Seeing him again drained her from the dumb-bravery so she wouldn't say 'Pretty lame actually' but instead "Most appreciated, thank you."

"So the lady found her manners again. You seem to be more entertaining than I thought." Loki let his gaze go over Skye's thin frame, taking in all of her appearance. "Pretty interesting indeed."

"So what? You want me to be your personal home-entertainment? Nope, not gonna happen!" She really didn't know what made her snap like that. The thought of the situation itself or his strange glare, but, whatever it was, it did the job. Being used was one of the things she hated most in life, so it was only natural that this made her mad as hell. Despite her tiny-ness she could actually be pretty menacing. Well, sometimes at least. This time obviously was not one of those. He laughed. Heartily so, and ridiculing her anger in mere seconds, he almost bend over and held his stomach. It was weird to look at the evil mate who led an alien-invasion upon New York laugh openly like that, so Skye just stood there and stared. Dumbfounded.

Slowly Loki caught himself and returned to his straight-up posture, running his hand through his black, smooth hair. "And you really think you get a say in this?"

"I'm definitely not gonna do any bloody thing from now on. Let's see how entertaining you find that." And with these words she just sat down on the floor, cross-legged and arms crossed over her chest. Reluctant to act or react to anything.

Loki looked at her quite surprised. He was sure she wouldn't be able to do this for long. None of the mortals ever have done something like this, which intrigued him. They mostly froze in place out of fear or tried to talk themselves out. Really, who would hope to talk himself out of a situation with Loki Silvertongue? Stupid.

Growing bored of staring at Skye's unmoving form he turned his back to the silent mortal and went to his black couch to sit down. From there he continued to watch her while pretending to read a book.

Skye was sitting on the floor for what felt like an hour now. She was determined to keep it that way, but as usually with the things she was determined to do she lost interest. Growing bored rather quickly the girl glanced over at the god, who just sat on the couch, one leg over the other, reading a book. Her position was starting to hurt but she didn't want him to see her move. Surely, she had to make a point, couldn't appear weak.

With the pain growing over time she slowly lost her determination and shifted slightly, only making it worse. A grown threatened to leave her throat but Skye managed to stifle it. Her arms and legs longed to be moved, spread out so the blood could flow undisturbed again. Shortly before the student could give in to her desire the god of mischief stood up and walked over to her again.

Kneeling in front of her he stared into her dark brown eyes. "You know, never before has a mortal behaved like this in my presence." Skye's eyes widened. She hadn't anticipated that.

"So I'm not the first victim to your kidnapping?" She asked with raised eyebrows.

"We speak again, do we? No you are not the first I took here, but the first to act stupidly in the face of a god." He gave her a menacing glare and saw the fear in her eyes. Satisfying but still not enough. "Did you think this little plan of yours through? Just sitting on my floor won't get you anywhere and believe me I have time and patience. You would die of old age before achieving anything."

"Proven by you kneeling before me." Oops. That probably wasn't a good idea judging by the anger flashing in the Asgardian's green eyes. Loki grabbed the girl's right arm and hauled her to her feet. Before she could find her balance again, due to the long sitting-on-hard-wooden-floor-thing her legs weren't really up to standing, let alone walking, right now, he shoved her though a door at the other end of the room and onto a balcony high over the streets of, hopefully, New York.

It was dark outside, the night sky was coloured dark blue but no stars could be seen, as it was illuminated by the lights of the city that never sleeps. The streets were plastered with tiny streetlights and adversaries. It could have been a quite beautiful view, if Skye's life wouldn't be in danger at the moment.

Pushing her with the back to the railing Loki growled into her ear. "You dare to insult me. You dare to defy me. Do you value your life so little? Give me one reason not to push you over this railing and let you fall to death." When she didn't respond right away he put his free hand onto her stomach and began to push.

Skye didn't know what to do, sure, but she was completely lost to why she didn't beg but challenged him even further. Adrenaline? Some crazy death-wish deep inside of her? Complete and utter insanity?

"I'd say because you grow bored of being obeyed all the time. Isn't it dreary to always get what you want?" Probably all of the above.

Loki just looked at her. He could see that she herself was shocked at what she just said. But what intrigued him even more was the courage that seemed to burn inside this tiny mortal body. He moved his hand from Skye's stomach behind her lower back and pulled her away from the railing.

"You really are more than meets the eye, Skye Holmes. I'm impressed. I might want to keep you, so be thankful." He whispered to her. His words sent a shiver down her spine and she could do nothing but stare at him. In the moonlight his facial features were accented and at the same time somehow smoothed, making him look as unearthly as he truly was.

Loki led her back inside the apartment and to the kitchen-counter. What did he plan to do now?

"Since you are going to be here for a while it would only be polite to offer you something to drink. What would you like, dear?" Loki's whole behaviour had shifted from life-threatening to polite-host, which was very unnerving for the small woman in front of him, and he loved it.

xXxXxXxXx

Somehow living with the god of mischief for some time now, Skye began to slowly understand him. At least she hoped she did. They were sitting on the black couch together both absorbed by their books when Skye was slowly falling asleep, the book falling from her hands and landing on the floor with a thud. Loki looked at her sluggishly tilting towards him, eyes half-closed and unfocused. He caught her mid-fall and let her head rest on his lap, after he put his own book away. And so they sat there, Skye asleep on Loki's lap and Loki stroking her long brown hair.

"You actually like this, don't you?" She hummed after a while, eyes still closed. Loki looked down at her a smile forming on his lips. "What exactly do you mean, dear?" Skye chuckled slightly before answering him. "Having something to care for. To be needed."

"So you need me?"

She opened her dark brown eyes and locked them with his green orbs. "To see the god of lies startled. That is quite something."

"You didn't answer my question." He frowned.

"Yes." She never has been good with talking feelings so she hoped he would be content with just this. Apparently not. "Yes, what?" He insisted.

"Yes, I need you." The brunette reluctantly answered and blushed, turning away from his gaze to hide it. No success whatsoever. It was his turn to chuckle and, pulling her up to meet his eyes, he simply stated: "You're right."

_So this is it. Hope you enjoyed it. If you actually did, I would be really happy about a review and of course I welcome constructive criticism :)_

_Have a wonderful day people!_


	2. Chapter 2

_Hey, it's me again! Totally had a flow so here comes the new chapter :) Enjoy._

_I also just wanted to add that I oown nothing that doesn't belong to me._

It has been two month now, since Skye somehow moved in with the god of mischief and three weeks since that awkward situation on the couch.

_"__You actually like this, don't you?"_

_"__What exactly do you mean, dear?"_

_"__Having something to care for. To be needed."_

_"__So you need me?"_

_"__To see the god of lies startled. That is quite something."_

_"__You didn't answer my question." He frowned._

_"__Yes." _

_"'__Yes', what?" He insisted._

_"__Yes, I need you." _

_Pulling her up to meet his eyes, he simply stated: "You're right."_

After that she was so confused that she quickly scurried off and ran into the bathroom, leaving Loki with an irritated look on his face behind. Yes, definitely strange. Actually everything about these last two months has been strange.

Skye had always imagined the wannabe-conqueror of New York to be a heartless, cold monster. Of course Loki had his heartless-cold-monster-moments but overall he was a civilized and, in his own strange way, nice dude.

The first few weeks the god had put enchantments on the door and the windows so Skye wouldn't be able to leave through them (after she explained to him that she couldn't possibly escape through a window on the twenty-first storey he'd put those on the windows off). The second day was probably the most awkward of them all. After she'd left her room (yes, he gave Skye her own room) she saw him sitting at the kitchen table with a hot cup of tea which made her stomach growl. Loki of course had heard that and in return gave her one of his amused smirks again.

"Can I take this as a sign that you would like a cup of tea, dear?"

"Um, yes, thank you. But I'd also like to know if you'll let me go to my lectures. I mean I have my studies to do and all that stuff, you know?" Skye had fidgeted with her hands, not daring to look him in the eyes and quite afraid of his answer. He'd taken mere moments to think before he'd answered. "You may, but I will personally pick you up afterwards. And don't even think about running away, you may try but I will always find you." He had emphasized his statement with a menacing glare that'd told Skye he would actually quite enjoy such a little hunt, but the girl was content not to risk anything like that.

And that had been that. She'd followed her daily routine again, after cancelling the contract for her apartment, which she, according to Loki, no longer needed.

Being picked up by the god of mischief after her lectures for the first time has also been pretty strange. She had just left the lecture room when she bumped into him. He was just standing in front of her. Skye had quickly apologized and wanted to leave without drawing more attention than necessary. But it had already been too late. All the students in the hallway were watching as Loki rested his arm around her shoulder and said "Nothing to worry about, darling. Now come, let us go home." She'd just been able to nod in confusion and let herself being led outside and away from the campus. At least he hadn't been wearing his armour, but a long black coat, green scarf, black jeans and black shoes. However, everybody at the university now thought Skye had a handsome mysterious boyfriend.

So now she was sitting on the couch again, working on her seminar paper. Book lay scattered around her, some on the ground, some on the couch next to her thin frame and a few on the table in front of the student in which she searched for information to use. Skye was just about to grab a book from the floor when something lay down on her face and blinded her.

"It is so boring watching you study, little dove. Would you not like to do something interesting?" Loki whispered in Skye's ear, removing his hands from her eyes and resting them on her shoulders. She sighed.

"I have to do this Loki. The finals are right around the corner so I don't have time to do something interesting. Besides, this actually is pretty interesting." With that the brunette tried to get back to her work but all her books and her laptop were gone. Turning her gaze to the god behind her, she scowled. Couldn't she just get this done with? He had left her alone all this time until now, why the sudden change?

"Come now, let us go out. I tire of being in this apartment for so long."

"And where would you want to go? You're still the guy who tried to destroy New York, it's crazy enough that you still insist on picking me up after my lectures." Skye stood up and walked around the couch to halt in front of the trickster. Sternly she kept their eyes locked, waiting for an answer.

"As if any mortal could find me." He chuckled and ran his thumb over Skye's cheek. Irritated she pushed it away. "Besides, who would anticipate me wearing Midgardian clothing instead of my usual clothing?"

"It's still a risk, you know." An exasperated sigh escaped her lips, but she knew she wouldn't be able to talk him out of this.

"Do I see worry in your eyes, Skye Holmes? I am flattered." He laughed softly before taking her hand and bowing slightly. "I give you my most sincere vow that I shall not let myself get in danger."

"Fine, I guess. Your call. But do remember, New York is the city of the avengers, with that tower and everything." She admitted her defeat but couldn't help to give Loki a small smile.

"The queen of ice shows emotions today, I see." He laughed and walked into his bedroom. "Change so we can go."

"What? I'm not…! I can be very emotional." The brunette told the empty doorframe. So changing clothes it was. The only problem was she didn't know where they were going to go. So what should she wear?

Standing in front of her closet she decided to pick a thick pair of black thighs, a long-sleeved knee long Bordeaux dress, a long black cardigan, dark-grey boots with minimum heels and grey knitted socks. Finally she put on her grey coat, red scarf and gloves against the cold, it was still February and freezing cold, and put her beloved black beanie on her head. Grabbing her bag she went back into the living room where Loki was already waiting. "So where are we even going?" Skye asked while coming to a halt in front of him.

"Just going for a walk." He smirked and took her gloved hand in his, long fingers stroking the pattern of the knitwear. He was in his coat and scarf again, nothing really against the biting cold outside.

"Are you sure you are dressed warmly enough for a walk? And why do you even need me for this?" Again she sighed. This became quite a habit nowadays.

"Firstly, yes I am and, secondly, who would want to spend Valentine's Day alone?" He grinned at her dumbfounded expression. Valentine's Day? Today? She just always lost track of time, also she didn't care about these things.

"You are kidding me." The brunette just stated.

"Me? Kidding? Never. But you are always so fixated on something, or nothing at times, that you never engage in conversation. You don't even have friends at your university, so I thought it my duty to get you out of the house." The god pulled Skye out of the door and down the stairs by her hand before she could respond.

So there they were, walking along the illuminated streets of New York until they reached Central Park, which, still covered in a thin layer of snow, looked astonishing. Due to the late hour and the cold it was almost completely deserted. Quiet. Skye let out a breath she didn't remember to have hold in front of the beautiful view and looked at Loki.

"It probably is nice to get out from time to time." She smiled at him. As nice as this was, a shiver ran down her spine, making her shake slightly. It was still very cold and spring seemed to make the people wait this year.

"I am delighted you like it, dear." The god of mischief said while he pulled his mortal to his chest to keep her from shivering. He felt her arms around his waist. She was so ridiculously small, but that made him want to protect her even more. It has been so long since somebody, anybody, has been at ease in his company. Calm, even content with his touch. It felt good. And that was, lately, something rare in his life.

They stood there for some time until the cold became too obtrusive so they entered a nearby café, claiming a table in the far corner. They both ordered tea. Loki a Sencha green tea and Skye her favourite, Earl Grey. When they both got their cups and had some quiet peace they were able to relax.

"I would've never anticipated any of this." The brunette admitted quietly. Loki quirked an eyebrow at the confession. "What exactly do you mean, dear?" Skye chuckled at the question. "Living with someone, going out on Valentine's Day, being picked up after my lectures and most importantly all of the above with no one else than the Norse god of mischief. All this is just so extraordinary and at the same time feels so normal and… right, somehow."

"I know what you mean." Loki's sentence was spoken so quietly Skye almost didn't hear it. He sounded vulnerable. Something that just didn't fit Loki and it made Skye sad to see him like that. She didn't even know why. Normally he was confident, strong, even arrogant at times, bit never vulnerable. Instinctively the girl took his hand in hers, or more specifically his long fingers since her own hands were so annoyingly small.

Her action made him look up and into her dark-brown eyes. He saw the concern and quickly recovered himself, straightening his posture to seem more confident.

"It is getting late, why don't we go home?" Loki didn't want to talk about it, obviously, so Skye complied and they went back to the apartment.

xXxXxXxXx

Nick Fury was, well, furious when Thor arrived on the Helicarrier to tell them that his brother has escaped his prison in Asgard almost a year ago. For almost one year this so called prince didn't saw it necessary to let S.H.I.E.L.D. know that the homicidal god who led an alien-invasion against New York was on the loose.

"I am most sorry, Nick Fury, but the reparation of the Bifrost couldn't be completed since last month."

"And why did you come here immediately? Why wait another month?"

"I had important matters to attend to in Svartalfheim and Vanaheim that couldn't wait. As prince of Asgard I have…"

"Yeah, yeah duties. But you also have duties as an Avenger! What if your crazy brother is scheming another attack, right now? What if he's already here?"

"Aye, I will immediately start looking for Loki on Midgard. If he has taken residence in your realm I swear I will find him!" And with these words the thunderer took off to Avengers tower. To tell his friends what has aspired and to warn them.

xXxXxXxXx

They were home again. Opening the front door a draft of warm air greeted them and Skye was most thankful for it. She took off her coat, scarf, gloves and beanie and out them back in her closet before returning to the kitchen. Loki was already there, making dinner.

"What's on the menu today?" She asked while going around the counter to stand beside the god, glimpsing into the frying pan.

"Pancakes." He simply answered, too absorbed in cooking to pay her any attention. That was a thing about the trickster that made the brunette wonder many times. How could he be consumed by a normal task such as cooking pancakes? His voice pulled her out of her thoughts. "Don't give me that look, dear, you do the exact same thing all the time."

"What do you mean?" But instead of an answer he gave her only a soft chuckle.

xXxXxXxXx

Tony Stark liked surprises, even loved them, as long as they were pleasant and, at best, contained at least a small amount of booze. This was not one of those pleasant surprises. This was Thor smashing through his floor-to-ceiling window (the exact same window Loki had thrown the genius through).

"Ok, big guy. Rule number one: No destroying Tony's stuff. Tony's stuff also includes each and every window in this tower, get that?" Genius, billionaire, philanthropist Tony Stark began his rambling about how he didn't like to repair half of his tower every time the thunderer visited.

"I am most sorry friend Tony, but there is an urgent matter at hand. My brother has escaped the dungeons of Asgard about nine months ago and I…"

"Your what has done what?" Tony spurted out in disbelief. "And when?" He added furiously. "Nine months ago and you consider now to be the right time to tell us? Did you hit yourself on the head with your hammer?"

"As I said, I am most sorry, but the Bifrost had to be repaired before I was able to come here." This time Thor deliberately left out that that had happened a month ago.

"So, is he back on earth? I mean he could be, like, everywhere by now, right?" Tony still couldn't believe this whole situation.

"The Allfather was able to follow his magic trace back to Midgard and here it remained. 'Tis most certain Loki has come here."

"Can you Allfather determine where exactly he is or did he dumb that task on you, and therefore us?" Tony knew the answer. Why did he even ask? Maybe there was a tiny crippled crumble of hope, that Thor already knew everything important and would take off with his batshit brother in a few days. Or maybe even hours? But no, Tony Stark had to be right once again. They, and they definitely meant all the Avengers and not just him, had to do the dirty work again. Great. Peachy.

xXxXxXxXx

Skye sat in front of the telly, zapping through the channels. Nothing interesting. As always. She almost zapped past a news show but, almost instinctively, stopped to see what was going on in the world. The reporter, a blonde tall woman in a grey costume, was standing in front of the Avenger tower.

_"__Witnesses stated they have seen Thor, one of the famous Avengers, crash into a window of the Avenger Tower. The so called 'God of Thunder' has last been seen during the New York invasion. So what does his sudden appearance and obvious urgency to enter the tower mean? Is earth again in danger? Will the Avengers fight this possible new threat off, like the last one? Stay informed, people. It might be more important than ever."_

Skye turned the telly of. Thor has come to earth again? Why? To search for Loki? Most likely. That definitely wasn't good news and she had to tell the trickster.

"Loki?" She peeked inside his room, calling his name again, but didn't receive an answer. Walking into the kitchen she saw him behind the counter, pouring himself a cup of tea.

"What is the matter?" The god simply asked, steaming cup in one hand and leaning back on the counter.

"Bad news." Skye bit her lower lip. Why was this so difficult for her?

"What happened? Did you eat all the Hobnobs again?" Loki teased her and loved softly at her reddening cheeks.

"That was only one time after a frustrating week, I hadn't… That's not important right now. Thor is back on earth." Obviously being embarrassed helped her strange fear of delivering the bad news. Loki's face darkened. "Are you sure? How would you even know that?"

"It was on the news. He crashed into the Avenger tower." And after a moment she added out of concern "Will he be able to find you? Track you down with some Asgardian stuff or skill?"

"Do not worry about that oaf, I have put an enchantment on this place so my presence cannot be traced and Heimdall is not able to see or hear me." He gave her a reassuring mischievous smirk which made her sigh. He was far too happy to take risks, like, you know, living directly under the Avengers' noses.

"It will be alright."

xXxXxXxXx

"So you can track him down?" Captain America asked Thor. All the Avengers were sitting around a table in the tower, discussing their plan of action.

"Aye, I can sense his aura when it is strong enough in one area." Thor beamed, proud to have an answer to the how-to-find-Loki-problem.

"So we just let you run across the city until you find a trace of Reindeer Games, like a dog?" Tony sure found this thought quite amusing.

"Nay friend Tony, I will fly over the city and when I sense something we will know he is back here." Natasha gave Thor a look that said 'Are you serious?' before speaking. "Why are you so sure that he's in New York? He could be everywhere on the planet."

"It is a feeling that tells me my brother has come here again, I am sure of it." Thor still beamed. Hawkeye, however, groaned loudly at this. "So we're acting on a hunch of goldilocks here? No proof whatsoever? Seriously?"

"We don't really have a choice. Let's just try it." Steve sighed and the group dissolved to prepare for a possible Loki-situation, while Thor started to scan New York for a trace of his brother.

And he found one. Around the campus of the New York University. Loki must have been there quite often in the recent past, the thunderer thought to himself, making his way back to the tower to deliver the, hopefully, good news.

_So that's it again. Hope you enjoyed the new chapter :) But I cannot promise to keep the update speed this high, I fear. I wrote half of this chapter in one of my lectures today and I probably shouldn't let this become a habit :D_

_I would be most grateful for a review, be it praise or critique :)_

_Anyways, have a wonderful day people!_


	3. Chapter 3

_I really have a flow right now so I present you the next chapter! Enjoy, please. :)_

Since afternoon Loki and Skye were sitting on the couch, the brunette leaning with her back against the god's side, both engrossed in their books. It was already darkening outside by now but not one of them moved. After another hour of silent reading Loki had finished his book and laid it on the coffee table. Skye wasn't bothered by that at all as she was completely absorbed in whatever work of Shakespeare she was reading right now, so the god of mischief just poked her in her side. The girl squeaked and sharply turned her head towards the raven-haired man.

"What the bloody hell?" She put emphasize on every word to express her dislike for his action. Loki, however, just laughed.

"So can I take it you are ticklish or was it just the element of surprise that granted me such an amusing sound?" Smirking at her he extended his hand to poke her again. She slapped at it, causing him to laugh again.

"Definitely the latter." Skye pouted but it was quite obvious that Loki didn't believe her so he just poked her again which made the girl jump.

"Oh, I can see that." He stated sarcastically. "I am going to have a lot of fun."

Skye groaned at the prospect of the never-ending stress this was going to cause her. Hitting him with her book on the head, he shot her a scandalized look. "How dare you hit a god with a book?" But there was no real threat in his voice. More… was it playfulness?

Before Skye could dive into this line of thought any further he launched at her, pinning her to the sofa and actually started to tickle her. He literally, truly tickled her. And she couldn't help but gasp and start laughing violently. "Sto-stop it! Oh my… just… stop. Please! I-I can't… any…more." And, suddenly, he stopped and stared down at her like a predator would stare down his prey. His gaze never shifting from her deep brown eyes. "Well, look at that. Like deer in the headlight, as you Midgardians say. Did you really just beg me to stop? Very interesting, indeed." He smirked again, still holding her down.

"You just tortured me." Laughing she punched him on the chest, which had by no means any effect on the man. "Your definition of torture is, I must admit, quite fascinating." Then he mumbled something Skye couldn't make out and let go of her. Sitting on the couch like a normal person again he pulled her up, too.

"We should call it a night, it's gotten pretty late, don't you think?" She said and got to her feet. Making her way to the bathroom she quickly stated "first" and closed the door. Sharing a bathroom with an Asgardian could be quite difficult from time to time, but after explaining the human's sense of privacy to him the situation has improved significantly. She just had to forget the few times he had surprised her in the bathroom by just teleporting inside without checking if it was already occupied.

She went to bed and fell into a dreamless sleep. However, sometime around three in the morning Skye was woken by a strange noise. Curious as she was she slipped out of her bed and tapped into the living area. There it was again. It sounded like a groan. Then a gasp. Coming from Loki's room. For a moment the lump in her throat made her consider just to go back to bed, but her curiosity bested her doubt and on she went. Standing in front of his door she hesitated again. Should she knock? Or silently peek inside to see what was going on? However she was going to decide, her thoughts were interrupted by a voice, muffled through the door. "I know you are there. Come in." So Loki had heard her, or in some other alien way sensed her presence.

She breathed in deeply and slowly let the air flow out again before opening the door. Peeking inside from behind the door she saw Loki's figure standing in front of the window, his frame illuminated by the lights of New York at night. He turned towards her and closed the distance with a few strides of his long legs.

Those who didn't know him would say his appearance was pretty normal, but having spent time with the god Skye could tell something was off. He looked worn out and she could see a haunted look in his eyes. She lightly touched his cheek with her left-hand fingertips. "Are you alright?" The girl asked silently.

"Yes." Was all he had as an answer. Skye didn't believe him. "No, you're not. What's the matter?" He just sighed. Taking Skye's hand from his cheek into his he pulled her into an embrace. "Should I… Do you want me to stay?" She asked tentatively. Stiffening he looked down at her. "Why would you make such a proposal?"

"Well, this might sound dumb, but I used to do this when my little brother have had nightmares. So I just thought… No, sorry. That was a stupid idea, I mean we're not kids or something, so…" She stammered, blushing. "Oh do shut up, would you?" Skye could feel his chuckle. So she hadn't screwed up. Yet.

Without further conversation he just pulled her along to his bed. Loki actually accepted her suggestion of children's nightmare medicine. That's how they ended up cuddling in Loki's bed this night.

Loki slung his arms around the mortal's thin frame, taking in her scent and bathing in her warmth. He would never admit it but she eased his anxiety after the newest nightmare. He felt the girl shift in his arms and looked in her eyes. They just stared at each other for a couple minutes until Skye finally spoke.

"How long have you been on earth?" He took his time to answer. "Why do ask this now?"

"I was curious for quite a while and I don't think you want to talk about whatever happened." She gave him an uncertain but sincere smile, causing him to smirk.

"About three month ago I arrived just outside New York."

"And where have you been before that? I mean if you want to tell me, I am pretty curious."

The god sighed. He actually wanted to tell her. Why that was so he didn't really know. But he did.

"After my failed invasion I was taken back to Asgard to serve time in the dungeons as punishment for my crimes. After a week, however, I was abducted by my former allies, who, I must say, aren't really the best company. They, especially their leader, weren't happy with my failure so he took his revenge. I think it best not to dive into the details, let's just say I got barely away after a five-month stay. I escaped to Midgard and have been here ever since." That obviously was the short version but Skye knew he wasn't going to tell more. Also she got a feeling this story had something to do with his odd behaviour tonight. But she wouldn't pry.

"So what exactly have you been doing here on Midgard before you decided to kidnap me and force me to live with you?" The girl joked to lighten up the mood and guide the conversation to not so dangerous topics.

"Kidnap? Force? Do you mean to tell me you hate living with me?" She looked up expecting to see mockery in his eyes but instead there was hurt. Skye wanted to kick herself. "No! No, I really like living with you. The first day was quite unnerving, naturally, and the first week somehow strange but I really like it here. And I…" She trailed off, not really knowing what she wanted to add. That wasn't important though as she saw the hurt turn into contentment.

"I guess I can tell you that, then. Firstly I had found this place and made it my own. I had to improve it quite a lot but I am content with the result. Then I lived a normal Midgardian life although I grew bored very quickly and started to search some entertainment." He smirked again. A good sign, Skye guessed.

"When exactly was 'very quickly'?"

"After two days." He shrugged. Wow. That really was quickly. "You seem to grow bored rather easily." Somehow a bad feeling began to spread throughout Skye. What if he grew bored of her? Would he just throw her out some day? Averting her gaze she began to stare at Loki's chest, suddenly unable to keep eye-contact. Loki, of course, noticed her movement and the sudden shift of her mood. "No." He said while moving her gaze back towards his eyes by gently pushing her head up with his hand under her chin.

"What?" Startled, Skye didn't really comprehend what he meant.

"I won't get bored of you." The god's thumb stroked her cheek in slow circles.

"I… How can I be sure?" She felt so stupid for asking this. Like she was in need of the god of mischief, or was she? Skye didn't really know anything for certain at the moment. Nothing but the fact that she was happy. Right here, right now.

"You can't. But where would be the fun when everything was certain?" He tightened his embrace and lightly kissed Skye's forehead. The notion was over so quickly that the brunette wasn't sure if she'd just imagined it. "Now sleep." And that was the end of their nightly conversation.

xXxXxXxXx

When Thor had shared his discovery with the other Avengers they had started to make plans. First: Go to the campus and ask around. Maybe some students have seen him, maybe he was even disguising as one. Second: According to the insights from 'First' make a plan of attack, even though Tony preferred the plan to be 'Attack' from the beginning. Third:? Fourth: Goal.

So Cap and Natasha were on the main NYC campus right now. Steve looked around warily. The students surely couldn't be considered normal all over, at least by a 1940's standard. Tasha approached a group of girls.

"Hey there, have you seen a tall, black-haired guy around here lately?" In response the girls giggled, then a blonde one spoke up. "Handsome? Dreamy eyes?" Natasha nodded. "Comes here every day." She giggled again, making the widow feel the urge to roll her eyes. "Where exactly, and what does he do?"

"He comes to pick up his girlfriend every day." A brunette scoffed. "Totally out of his league. Tiny and ordinary." Natasha turned to her and asked for specification. "It's the small one with the ridiculously long brown hair." The brunette pointed towards a side-entrance and Nat and Steve both looked that way. They saw a small girl, long brown hair, reaching the middle of her back, on her way over the huge campus. They also saw how the girl ran into a tree, being completely absorbed in her thoughts, and hurriedly gathering up the books that have fallen to the ground as result. The agents looked at each other, nodded and began to follow the student. Steve somehow felt sorry for her.

xXxXxXxXx

Skye had to hurry. Professor Parker had, once again, prolonged his lecture so she was already too late for her next one. She ran around a corner and right into a wall. Or it felt like a wall. It was, in fact, a man, as Skye could see when she looked up and into his face. Nice blue eyes, short blond hair, tall, muscly and somehow seemingly shy. "I-I'm so sorry, but I'm in a hurry. Sorry, am already late for my lecture." Mumbling even more apologies under her breath she again gathered up her books, thank god those weren't the library's, and, with one last "sorry" she ran off.

xXxXxXxXx

"She didn't seem like the girlfriend of a would-be-conqueror if you ask me." Steve stated after their little encounter.

"Maybe she doesn't know." Was Tasha's short answer.

"She's probably just another of his victims in his newest scheme. We have to save the girl." The all righteous Captain didn't want to believe an ordinary girl to be the partner of a war-criminal. "We can come back tomorrow and take her to the tower."

"Calm down, Steve. We have to confirm her involvement with Loki first. If those students were right he will come to pick her up. We will watch and see what happens."

And so they did.

xXxXxXxXx

After her last lecture Skye made her way to the side-entrance again. "Hey there." A voice said next to her. Turning into the direction it came from she suddenly faced… someone. Probably a student, she didn't know him. "Uh… do I know you?"

"James Roberts. I have a lot of lectures with you. Never noticed me though. Mind changing that?" He came closer causing Skye to back away until a wall was in her back. Great. Caught between wall and James she only wished for Loki to come soon. Situations like these weren't really her strength. Getting no answer James spoke again. "How about you and me, watching a DVD at my room. You know, getting to… know each other." James lifted her chin up so he could see her eyes. "I, uh…"

"Come on it's gonna be fun." He stroked her cheek. "Don't tell me you already have someone." Skye's heart was racing. Why the bloody hell was she unable to form a coherent sentence? Being too near to people she didn't know just set her off. Couldn't do anything about it, although she'd love to. Gathering all her courage she escaped his arms and left him standing in the corridor with one last "Sorry, I have to go".

Reaching the exit she let out a breath. SKye was just about to open the door, when something was blocking her path. Looking up she saw three of her fellow students. Three girls. Blonde, brunette and blonde again.

"What does he see in you?" The brunette scoffed, looking Skye up and down.

"What?" Was all she could answer to that question. One of the blondes snarled. "Yesterday I talked to him and she coldly turned me down. What does that man see in you?" This had to be a bad joke, right? Stuff like this only happened in terrible school dramas, not in real life.

"So how did someone like _you_ get his attention?" The other blonde asked aggressively. Skye was way too perplex to say anything at all. Situations like these were totally not her terrain and her lack of speech obviously made the, sadly taller, others even more angry.

xXxXxXxXx

Steve frowned. "I don't like bullies. We should help." Natasha sighed. "We can't. It could blow our cover. Wait." Her expression went blank in concentration. "There look."

And they saw him. Tall, black coat, green scarf. Going on a good pace towards the group of students they have been watching just now. Even from afar Natasha could see his irate expression. "I don't think we will be needed, Cap."

xXxXxXxXx

The group of three was towering over Skye. Intimidating, yes, but she has been living with an Asgardian, who coincidentally had been trying to conquer the world, so she sure as hell was able to deal with a group of jealous women.

Apparently she was wrong. Unable to act she prepared herself for whatever was to come, watching as one of the blondes raised her hands. Squeezing her eyes shut and tightening the grip on her books, she waited.

Nothing happened. Skye looked up again and into green eyes.

Loki had a firm grip on the blonde's wrist who was looking at him terrified. He let his gaze glide over all three of them before growling. "Go away." He let go of the wrist and the students scurried off. Embracing Skye the god of mischief sighed. "I do like the thrill of the action but I would preferred the action to concentrate on me rather than you." Loki rested his hand on the back of her neck, tightened his hold for a moment and let go.

"Come now, we have plans." Taking her hand the two of them left the campus.

xXxXxXxXx

"He just really saved her from the bullies." Astonished, Steve turned to Tasha.

"Maybe she doesn't know who he is. I'll follow them, you go back." The widow left Steve behind, still wondering. Walking around the corner she heard him say "Be careful" before concentrating solely on her target.

xXxXxXxXx

After walking down the streets of New York for about half an hour Skye's curiosity once again got the better of her. "Where are we even going?"

"Secret." Loki smirked and squeezed Skye's hand. Shivering she etched closer to the tall god and hugged his arm. So they went on to wherever their goal was.

About ten minutes later they came to a halt in front of a small café. Looking it over closely she recognized it as the one they visited on Valentine's Day. "Wonderful! I really liked it here." Hugging his arm even tighter she looked him in the eyes and was greeted by a genuine smile.

"I'm glad you like it. Let's enjoy another cup of tea before going home, shall we?" Nodding in approval she entered the small shop after him, through the door he held open for her. So real gentlemen still existed. Even if they were Norse gods. Didn't matter.

xXxXxXxXx

Natasha had anticipated the couple to get into a car and drive away, instead they went away on foot all the way to a tiny café near Central Park. The sight was just ridiculous. Loki, who had tried to take over earth, together with a young woman, maybe twenty-four or twenty-five years old, sitting in a café drinking tea. There just had to be something wrong.

They left the café and moved into an empty alleyway. Natasha peeked around the corner but the last she saw of the two was them disappearing into thin air. Damnit! But of course he wouldn't lead her to his hide-out.

xXxXxXxXx

"So why did we teleport home today?" Skye asked, trying to find her balance again after the sensation of teleportation. It was a feeling like sea-sickness or nausea.

"I did not feel like walking." Loki smirked in response, letting go of his mortal. "Did you enjoy the evening?"

"Yes, it was really nice. Thank you for taking me out again." She smiled at him. Looking in his eyes she frowned. There was something. "What's the matter?" The brunette asked carefully. "Why do you let yourself get bullied by these cretins?"

"What do you mean? Oh… them. I-I'm just not the person to go for confrontation…"

"What if I hadn't gotten there in time?" He got furious which made her slump her shoulders, wanting to disappear. "I'm sorry." Lifting her gaze up she saw him go stiff. He hesitated for a moment before speaking again. "No, it's okay. That is exactly what I am here for, right? Protecting you."

"You… what?" And suddenly she couldn't speak anymore at all, as Loki closed the distance between them and shut her lips with his own. Surprised she gasped, but calmed down very soon, as his warmth spread throughout her body. She clasped his shirt while he slung his right arm around her waist and buried his left hand in her hair. And so they stood there, taking each other in, relishing the moment.

When they pulled apart none of them knew how long they had been standing there, but it didn't matter. "You are mine now." Loki whispered in Skye's ear. The brunette chuckled. "Wasn't that a fact since you took me here, refusing to let me go out alone?"

"Point taken. Now let us go to bed, dear."

And so the day ended and Skye fell asleep, happy and overwhelmed by her own emotions.

_Any thoughts are welcomed to be put in review form, whether they are positive or negative :)_

_As always, have a wonderful day people!_


	4. Chapter 4

_Hi there again! Creativity has taken a hold of me and forced me to write another chapter :D So please. enjoy your stay.. wait, wrong business. However, enjoy!_

Skye awoke the next morning from a very pleasant dream. Loki had kissed her and then they had been going to bed together. It was, well, dreamy. She could still feel Dream-Loki's warmth around her when she snuggled deeper into her pillow. The brunette was definitely not ready to get out of her bed or, especially, the wonderful memory of her dream. She wanted her dream to be reality, badly. But what did that mean?

Was it just desire? He was really good looking with his tall slender frame and the smooth black hair. Or was it maybe the thrill of the danger? What else than dangerous could it be to get in touch (haha) with an alien prince who tried to conquer earth with an army of even more aliens. Or was it actual affection she felt towards the liesmith?

Over these past couple months she grew accustomed to his behaviour and overall character, which tended to change from time to time it seemed. Sometimes he was just overall a polite and civilized mate who even cooked for her. And bloody hell his pancakes were fantastic! But other times he was incommunicative and withdrawn, even showing his menacing side. Although that got better over time and happened very seldom anymore, she knew there were a lot of things he didn't tell her.

She was okay with that, though. Everybody could have their secrets. Remembering the night she had stayed with Loki after… whatever had happened… she thought about the things he had told her. So he wasn't that secretive around her anymore.

All in all, Skye concluded, she had grown quite fond of the go of mischief. He was a great flatmate for an alien at least.

Still half asleep she heard someone speaking to her. "You have to get up, love." Must be her imagination so out of habit she just answered. "Go away, I'm still sleeping." Mumbling some more words nobody in the nine realms would've understood she pulled the pillow over her head.

"You have responsibilities. Do you want to ignore them, dear?" There was the voice again? Her conscience maybe? Probably. But since when did her conscience have such a melodic dark voice?

"I don't want to get up, I had such a beautiful dream…" She then hummed into her pillow.

"What was it, dear?" The voice asked with curiosity in its voice. Why wouldn't it know? It was her conscience, right? But she was way too tired to think about any paradoxes right now.

"Loki kissed me…" Her storytelling skills weren't at their best at the moment, obviously.

"What if that wasn't a dream but reality?" Asked the voice now with a chuckle. What was wrong with her conscience today? It was way too witty.

"That's not possible, too dreamy, too unrealistic, too impossible…" Her articulation wasn't at its best either, as it seemed, but she didn't really care.

"But it was, love. We can repeat it right now if you want." Now it sounded… mischievous. Wait. Oh… No. Skye sat up right as fast lightning, throwing the pillow, accidentally really, in Loki's grinning face. The 'Sorry' was stuck in her throat as she tried to process what just had happened.

All the while the pillow fell down on the bed, between Skye and Loki, and just now did the brunette register that she was, in fact, not in her own bedroom. With a shocked expression she looked at the trickster. "So… we really…?" He nodded. "It wasn't a…?" Another nod. "So, we…?" Nod.

Then he came into motion, took her face into his hands and closed her lips with his. Like in the dream. No, not a dream. Like last night. There was the warmth radiating from him again through this gentle light touch of lips upon lips. After a moment he deepened the kiss, used a bit more force. But still, he wasn't pressing. He waited. For her to lead the action.

For the brunette this was a strange and completely unknown situation. Never had someone given her the lead, no matter the kind of situation she'd been in. Skye was unsure what to do or, for that matter, if she should do anything at all. Loki felt her uncertainty

For the moment they both just enjoyed each other's presence. Loki, taking the lead again, moved his hands slowly from her face to her sides and around her lower back, carefully exploring her slight figure. Pulling his mortal towards him so that she was sitting on his lap he initiated a kiss again. This time he was more demanding, sliding his tongue over her lower lip.

The brunette parted her lips slightly. Seeing that as an invitation the trickster started to explore her with his tongue. He didn't own the title Silvertongue for nothing. Skye buried her right hand in his soft black hair and the left hand clutched to the front of his shirt. Desperate not to lose this happiness she let a soft groan escape her lips.

When they broke apart both of them were panting slightly. Skye more than Loki, though. Gods. "You still do have responsibilities, you know?" Loki smirked. What did he mean? Oh, right, the paper she was supposed to hand in today.

"Oh, bollocks! Sorry! I didn't mean to swear… I have to hurry, bloody…" Biting her lip to keep herself from embarrassing any more she stormed into the bathroom, leaving a laughing Loki behind. Twenty minutes later Skye ran into her own room to get changed. Black tights, grey woollen socks, long red pullover, dark grey ankle boots and the black coat. Grabbing her scarf, gloves and beanie she ran into the god of mischief. "Sorry!" She panted. "I need to hurry!" He placed his hands on her small shoulders, trying to calm her down.

"Don't stress yourself, I can take you along if you want, love." Looking down at her he smiled slightly and offered her his hand. She looked at him for a moment, a smile forming on her face too, and lay her hand gently onto his. Then they disappeared.

xXxXxXxXx

The Avengers had a meeting again. It was like always. Messy. Nobody really paying attention until Steve eventually shouted for silence. And from there they had moved on to the important questions at the moment. "Do we watch Lord of the Rings or Star Wars today?" Clint. Typically.

"That is not the question at hand, friend Clint. We need to deal with my brother." Thor boasted but secretly wished for Lord of the Rings.

"Right. So what are we going to do, Capsicle?" Tony smirked at him, then winked. Idiot.

"We have to determine if the student, Skye Holmes, is Loki's hostage, accomplice or if she even knows his identity." Nobody knew an answer to that. Then Natasha broke the silence. "They teleported away together, so I guess she knows he is not your normal all-day guy."

"So accomplice or hostage it is." And the argument about tactics, attacks and potential outcomes of the former two began.

After about two hours they had some kind of a plan.

xXxXxXxXx

They reappeared around the corner of the campus still holding hands. Neither of them was making any efforts to let go. Standing in the cold February wind they just looked at each other. Noticing Skye's shivering he pulled her into a hug and whispered in her ear. "Be careful today and avoid these other _humans_." He spat the last word like it was venom. For Skye that was proof enough to believe he sincerely worried about her. This thought gave her a warm feeling deep inside her stomach. Strange.

"I will try to avoid them at any cost." She promised.

"Good, because you are mine now. And everyone that touches what is mine will suffer." He tightened his embrace before kissing her on the forehead, making the brunette blush. In response she kissed his cheek. "And you don't do anything stupid. Or mischievous." Skye joked while pulling back.

"Mischievous? Me? Never." He gave her an offended look. "What do you think of me, love?" Skye blushed again before speaking once more. "Only the best."

With that she turned on her heels and ran towards the campus. For one, she was really embarrassed (seemed to happen a lot in the recent past, damn her inability to deal with her own feelings) and also she was late again, despite alien teleportation. Sadly, Loki couldn't travel through time. Or could he? No, that would be way too abstract. Loki was a god, not a TARDIS.

Skye hurried inside the building, down the long corridor, up the staircase, down another long corridor and finally into the lecture hall. Quickly the student pulled out her paper and put it on Professor Parker's desk. He nodded approvingly and she seated herself in the last row to have some quiet.

She saw the trio from yesterday enter and hurriedly hid behind one of her many books. Thanks to the sheer size of the lecture hall they didn't see her and just took seats somewhere in the front to be near Parker. Admittedly he was very good looking. A young professor, dark hair, three-day-beard and glasses. Yes, he definitely was attractive, but nowhere near the looks of Loki.

Concentrate. Lecture. Important. Right, don't think of Loki, listen to the professor now. Classics, Shakespeare. Coriolanus today. Fierce fighter. Would Loki be a fierce fighter? He was the prince of an alien race who presumably had fought in many battles. No. Lecture. Learning. Studying. Studying Loki's face in the dim light of the night. Damn.

Suddenly there was someone next to her, causing her to jump slightly in her seat when he coughed and asked: "Excuse me, is that seat taken?" She looked up at the person. A man, tall blonde, blue eyes. Looked nice, somehow familiar but Skye didn't know from where.

"Er… no, please take it." He did so and smiled at her. Then she remembered.

"You were the wa… dude, I ran into yesterday! I'm so sorry, I was in a hurry and…" She stumbled upon her own words. Ridiculous. Embarrassing herself seemed to become a thing.

"It's ok, I don't mind. I am sorry I stood in your way." A sincere smile formed on both of their lips. Tension exterminated then. He appeared to really be nice, hopefully at least. "My name's Steve by the way. Ice to meet you,…?"

"Skye. I'm Skye Holmes."

"Like Sherlock Holmes? Wow, I never heard that name in reality." He laughed quietly.

"No, not here at least. In England it is quite common though."

"So you're British? That explains the awesome accent and the many apologies." Another smile. This guy radiated kindness and friendliness like a reactor would atomic energy. Well, at least one that would allow the energy to radiate. Distracting thoughts again. Away though vile fiends! She didn't really know what to answer now, so she just smiled. He smiled back. So many smiles, it was almost exhausting. But also nice for a change.

xXxXxXxXx

"He made contact, the subject doesn't seem to recognise him as an Avenger. Everything according to plan." Natasha Romanoff was sitting on one of those comfortless chairs they had in universities, halfway down the row of seats at the left hand side.

"Alright, let's hope for the best. Don't blow your cover, Tasha." A voice answered her through an earpiece.

"Clint." She didn't need to quirk an eyebrow (Hawkeye wouldn't see it anyway) her voice was telling the archer that she mentally did.

"Yeah, sorry. Just be careful."

"Copy that." The assassin continued to observe the two 'students' at the far end of the lecture hall. They were both socially awkward, that much could the Widow have observed from a mile away. It also didn't seem like she was mind-controlled. So, did she not know about Loki's identity, was she a hostage too scared to attempt to flee or was she, indeed, his accomplice? The young woman didn't seem scared though, so option one or three then.

xXxXxXxXx

They sat in silence for the rest of the lecture. Skye trying to actually listen while her mind desperately tried to lead her thoughts to a certain trickster. Steve was seemingly listening, too but from time to time he studied the woman beside him inconspicuously.

They left the room together, standing in awkward silence in the corridor. Neither of them wanted to just leave but also neither really knew what to say. Then Steve spoke up.

"So, um, how does your timetable for the rest of the day look?" He smiled again and Skye began to assume it was just a reflexive nervous behaviour when he didn't really knew what to do. But that was okay.

"I have half an hour until I need to head to my Creative Writing Course."

"Really? Me too! Shall we grab coffee somewhere to kill the time?" He radiated again. How could she possibly decline his offer, especially since this was the first ever nice communication she had with a fellow student. Skye really hadn't anticipated this anymore, America still managed to surprise her.

"Okay, sure. Where would you like to go?"

"I know a nice shop right around the corner."

"Alright then." They began to walk in the direction Steve had pointed out. "I think I've never seen you around here before." Skye stated what, strangely, made Steve blush. Cute… somehow.

"Oh, yeah, I was ill a long time and only came back this week, the day you ran into me." The tall blonde scratched his back with his right hand and grinned coyly.

"Oh no. I hope you didn't miss out too much. Do you want to lend out my notes? Since when have you been ill?" Skye didn't know why but she was eager to help Steve. Maybe because he was kind of like a lost puppy or maybe because he was the first in all NYU to be somewhat like a friend for her.

"That's really nice! But only if you don't need them at the moment."

"That's no problem, most of the stuff is already in my head." He laughed. She did too. They, both individually, were already really awkward but together it somehow combined to a big ball of wibbly-wobbly awkwardness. But still nice.

And so they took off, chatting and occasionally laughing, around the corner and down the alleyway. Skye just wanted to ask what the name of the coffee shop was, when her world went dark. The last thing she thought she heard was a mumbled 'sorry'.

_Yup, there you go. As always, hope you enjoined reading! Maybe leave a review and tell me what you thought :)_

_Have a wonderful day, people!_


	5. Chapter 5

Loki arrived at the campus the same time as every Friday waiting in front of the lecture hall where Skye's lesson was held. At exact four o'clock the students began to pool out of the room, but Skye was not with them. Neither was she in the room. He went further inside and towards the teacher.

"Excuse me? You don't happen to know if Skye Holmes was here today, do you?" Politely he asked the question looking the other man in the eyes. Brown, dull. Not like hers.

"No, she didn't come today, which is very unusual, she is my best student." The answer made Loki smile. Of course creative writing was her strength, she always had her head in the clouds thinking about anything and nothing. "You probably don't have an idea where she could be, do you?" He inquired further. She didn't just ran off between the classes to escape from him, did she? No, definitely not. She hadn't attempted to escape once, why should she now?

"I saw her leave the campus with another student I think, though I'm not completely sure if it was her." Another student? "Female or male?"

"What?" The teacher, professor, whatever, was startled.

"The other student: female or male? Only one?" Loki became impatient. Stupid mortals.

"Only one, a guy, tall, blonde, I think."

"Where did they go?"

"Down Greene Street I guess, who are you anyway?" The elder professor asked confused but Loki was already leaving the room in a rush. Tall blonde guy. Not one of those dumb mortal women and not the dark-haired idiot. Could it've been Thor? Not likely, she knew how the oaf looks. How could it even be one of the Avengers? Have they found him? Also unlikely. They would've come to his apartment directly.

Or not? If they observed him they might think Skye a victim of his scheme, whatever they thought he planned. He, admittedly, wasn't planning anything big at the moment, but who would believe him? Tall and blonde. Captain America? Possibly. _If_ it were the Avengers. Seriously, who else? Thor surely told them of his escape. But how did they find out about his connection to Skye?

Ah, of course. He had teleported to this campus every day in the last months so there certainly was a trace. And Thor must've enhanced his ability to sense magic traces otherwise he would've never been able to find his. Damn that oaf.

The question now was if Skye had gone with the Captain willingly or not. She surely has recognized him as he was a well-known public figure. Then again, she rarely had any deep knowledge about something besides books. But that was way too well-known information. Everyone knew the great Captain America. If that girl really had betrayed her she would be sorry, he promised her that, didn't he?

And those so called heroes would be sorry to take what was his.

xXxXxXxXx

Skye woke up with a headache and a stinging pain in her left arm. What had happened? Where was she? And, very importantly, why did she lose consciousness all of a sudden in that alley? The brunette slowly sat up in the bed she was apparently laying in. The blanket fell off of her, revealing that someone had removed her coat, scarf, gloves, beanie and boots. Great. Her head hurt like hell but she still somehow managed to swing her legs over the edge of the bed and stand up. Swaying she waited a moment to find her balance again (ha! What balance?).

After she had adjusted to the world around her and cleared her foggy mind at least a little bit, she looked around the room. It wasn't big but nicely furnished. Dark wood and pastel colours, huge windows that let the bright sunlight float into every corner and, her target, the door.

Skye staggered towards the wooden door but before she could even touch it, it swung open and a brown haired man with glasses and a slightly surprised expression stood before her. She didn't say anything. He did neither but only adjusted his glasses. Then he coughed silently and finally opened his mouth.

"Hi." That was all. "Hi?" She looked at him incredulously. "That's all I get after waking up in a strange bed, a strange room even and being confronted with a bloody stranger?!" Her people skills definitely didn't get better in critical situations but her shyness seemingly got washed away by anger. Good to know.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to… I wasn't expecting you to be up yet." He shifted slightly, uncomfortably.

"Aha. What about the other stuff? You know, being in a strange room, hell knows where?!" His expression showed her that she may have looked at least a little bit frightening. Never underestimate the small and that stuff. He seemed uncertain what to do, reluctant to enter the (her?) room, but also reluctant to leave just like that.

Before this whole situation could escalate though, someone else appeared.

Steve.

"Steve?!" Now her incredulous look was pointed towards him. He also looked uncomfortable with it. Good.

"Listen, Skye I haven't been completely honest with y…" he began but was cut short by the little woman in front of him.

"Oh, I am bloody sure you haven't been! What…? Kidnapping! Seriously? I…" _trusted you._ She didn't say it. "Never should've…" After her outburst she suddenly felt weak, took a step back. Another. Collapsing on the bed she covered her face with her hands. Skye wanted to cry but, at the same time, she didn't. So she just let her hands slip beside her head and stared at the strange ceiling.

"Look, Skye, I'm really sorry, believe me, but this is only for your own safety."

"Safety… My… safety?" She sat up again, ignoring the throbbing pain in her head, glaring daggers at the blond man in front of her. "I am twenty-four years old, I think I can handle myself." She stated coldly.

"Twenty… what?" That was the glasses-guy. "Wow, I didn't…" Luckily he didn't continue his thoughts loudly after he saw the woman's glare.

Skye breathed deeply. In, out. Repeat. "Alright. Spill it."

"What?" Steve looked at her. Lost like a puppy. Still cute but Skye didn't care. What she did care about was his betrayal, as idiotic as it seemed to be hurt by the betrayal of a complete stranger.

"Why is… _this_… for my own safety?" The brunette waved her hands through the air, addressing plainly everything around them.

"You see, the person you live with, he…" He didn't get any further as he was interrupted by Skye again. "How do you know with whom I live?"

"It's difficult. Look, what do you know about him?" Shit. Of course they knew. What should she tell them? Act as if she had no clue or defend Loki? Would they even believe her if she told them he wasn't all bad? Probably not. They most likely would think she was insane or he twisted her mind or something.

As the student didn't react Captain America asked another question, hoping she would answer that. "How did you even meet him?" She heard him. She registered the new question and answered without thinking. "December last year, the day before that terrible snowstorm. The metro wasn't working so had to walk home but at Central Park the whole ground was frozen and covered in snow. I slipped and fell and couldn't get up again. After a few minutes of humiliating myself a man offered me his help. He got me back to my feet and insisted to take me home. After a few corners he told me his name, I put one and one together and he teleported us to his place."

Her answer was met with dead silence. Steve and Bruce were only staring at her. After a few moments it was Bruce who broke the silence. "So you knew who he was. And what he had done?" She nodded, no point in telling lies, she was a terrible liar. Steve looked shocked. "You really… and you _stayed_!?"

"He threatened to hunt me down if I tried to escape, so yes." Skye mumbled her answer.

"Oh." The doctor was definitely lost. Was she a victim now? Or not? "But why did he let you go to your lectures then?"

"I asked him if I could. He said it was okay as long as he'd pick me up every day."

"And how was he in general?" Steve asked once again.

"You may not believe me, but he was actually a pleasant flatmate." She looked at her hands, unsure what else to do.

"You're right, I don't. That doesn't sound like the Loki we know. Did he never threaten you?"

"Well…" she began but stopped to think about how to put this so it didn't sound like he was an evil-overlord. "I might've pissed him off after he had brought me to his place. And he just might have threatened to throw me off the balcony. But I would say…" Skye couldn't say what she would say, though, as Steve interrupted her. "He what!?"

"It was my own fault!"

"No. He is evil. You have to see that." Steve didn't listen to her anymore. As it seems one not-so-nice action was outweighing his nice actions.

Bruce mumbled something that sounded like 'Stockholm Syndrome'. No that wasn't it. Or was it? No, diving into these kinds of thoughts wouldn't get her anything. The Captain opened his mouth again but was interrupted by the opening of the door.

"What is this? The canteen or something?" Skye groaned and crossed her arms over her chest.

"I think I like her." Stated the newcomer. Sporting a goatee and a smug smile this had to be Tony Stark, the Iron Man. "So this is Loki's whatever, right? Did you guys manage to find out what exactly she is to him?" He looks at the Captain first, then at Doctor Banner. The latter answered him. "She knows about his identity but she believes him to be not that bad, although he kidnapped her and threatened her life. I would say, well, possibly Stockholm Syndrome as brainwashing isn't that likely in my opinion."

"Thank you Brucey." He just ignored Skye's incredulous stare. "So, what do we do now?"

"If Loki comes to get her, we will be prepared. We can get him and send him straight back to Asgard's dungeons." Cap stated firmly, also ignoring Skye.

"Do you think he would come for her?" Bruce didn't sound convinced. But, well, would he? Would Loki risk his freedom to get her back? He was an Asgardian space prince, why would he? Tony must have seen the uncertainty in the brunette's eyes as he now asked her directly. "Do you think he would?" She looked up and into the man's brown eyes. What did she think? "I…" She didn't know.

The three Avengers looked first at her then at each other. "Let's just be prepared for any possibility." Steve extended his hand towards Skye. "Come on, we need to get you some food and water." The man was smiling again, reassuringly. So Skye sighed and took his hand letting herself be led into a huge living room/kitchen.

On the huge sofa two others were seated. They turned around at the sound of footsteps and Skye could see their faces. A woman, red hair, attractive, everything young girls nowadays wanted to be. And a man, looking quite disgruntled and annoyed. They had to be Hawkeye and Black Widow if the pictures Skye had seen on the telly were accurate. The assassins just nodded and returned to – whatever they were doing.

"Hey guys, has anyone seen Thor today? He's been away since morning." Looking around the room, Bruce waited for somebody to answer his question but all he got were uncertain looks. "I take that as a 'no'."

"Point Brake will be okay, Brucey-boy. He's a god-ish strong-man after all." Tony laughed and patted Bruce's shoulder. "Let's get back to work science-buddy!" Together they left the room, probably to Stark's workshop.

Skye seated herself at the kitchen table looking down at her hands again. She was in a room with three strangers right now which, by itself, made her very uncomfortable. The anger that had fuelled her earlier was almost gone completely. She felt exhausted and was in a place unknown to her. And what did Loki think when he couldn't find her anywhere on campus? He must think she betrayed him and made a run for it. Great day (Not).

_Don't even think about running away. I promise you that I will find you. And you, my dear, will be very sorry._

Skye tried to swallow the lump in her throat, still staring at her hands. "Are you okay? You're shivering." Steve. The ever so worried Steve Rogers. Skye hadn't even registered that she was trembling violently until now. Slowly she moved her gaze from her shaking hands to the Captain's chin. She couldn't look him in the eyes. "Yeah, I'm fine. It's nothing." He almost didn't hear her reply but he knew something wasn't right. He could also see that Skye didn't want to talk about it so he just placed a plate of scrambled egg in front of her. "Thanks."

xXxXxXxXx

Skye has been in Avenger Tower for two days, it was Sunday by now, and nothing had happened. No sign of Loki, nothing. Did he just dump her? Although he had promised (more like threatened) that he'd find her? But right at this moment there was one question burning inside her that wanted to be answered.

"You probably won't let me go to my lectures, will you?" Just asking was probably the easiest way to find out. It had only taken her two hours to muster up the courage for this question so she wanted a positive reply. But no. 'No' was also the answer she got from Steve, who sat across from her on the second couch in the large sitting area. It wasn't like she hadn't anticipated this outcome. Nonetheless, the thought of being confined to this place without her books or her studies saddened her greatly.

Steve must've noticed how crestfallen she looked all of a sudden, as he began to reason with her. "It's just too dangerous to let you go back there. Loki might find you." _Or she would run off to find him._ But that went unsaid.

"I need to go. I'll have finals soon and all of my notes are gone. I will fail…" She buried her head in her hands. The only she had come to New York was to take the Creative Writing course by Professor Gunn, who was just brilliant, and the literature course dedicated to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. They were one-of-a-kind-lectures. If she failed the finals she'd have to do the whole semester again. "Bollocks."

"Sorry, what?" Steve gave her a puzzled look, obviously confused about the meaning of her little curse. "Nothing, just me being depressed." He answered her with a deep and long sigh. "I know this is annoying but it is for your own safety and…"

"Yes, I get that everything is for my own safety. Do I look like a toddler to you?" Skye definitely got angry again. Slowly and steadily. She just hated people telling her what was 'best' for her.

Steve sighed again. "No, but you're dealing with forces…" "I cannot understand, yeah I got that too." She finished for him. Hugging her own legs and drawing them towards her chest she rested her forehead on her knees.

"You know… maybe… If I would come with you maybe you could go… if…"

"Really?! Thank you!" Skye jumped up from the couch and hugged Steve instead of her legs. "_If_ you promise not to leave my side." He finished and sighed again. He had been defeated by gloominess. Tony was right, he was too kind-hearted and soft.

xXxXxXxXx

"Are you crazy?" Were Natasha's first words when Steve told her the news. The second were: "Do you seriously want to go through with this?"

"Yes. We can't confine her to the tower against her will and we also can't hinder her studies." Captain America had thought this through and was confident it was the right thing to do.

"I hope you know what you're doing. Barton and I will follow you, just in case Loki shows up or she tries something." Natasha definitely wasn't happy about this and she would definitely tell Fury about this batshit plan.

Fury wasn't happy either. What a surprise.

xXxXxXxXx

Loki's plan was working wonderfully so far. Thor was out of the picture, not for good but at least for now, and he had been able to find Skye's location. What was not so great though was that there always were at least four Avengers at the tower. Especially Doctor Banner's hidden beast was a nuisance. The Liesmith wasn't really looking forward to another meeting with the green brute.

This evening she had actually managed to talk the Captain into letting her go. Impressive. For a mortal. After only two days she had wormed her way into Captain America's heart. The archer and Stark seemed to have taken a liking to her, too and although the Widow acted cold the god of lies could see that she was also actually quite fond of the girl. Looking small and harmless obviously had its perks. The doctor though tried to avoid any contact. _Better for him_, Loki thought.

Skye looked overall too content to make him believe she had been kidnapped, but at the same time she was too often gloomy. He still had to find out if she had run from him or not, and he would. In time.

xXxXxXxXx

It was late in the afternoon when the last lecture ended this Monday. Steve Rogers and Skye Holmes were just walking out of the building, the sun had already set, and across the campus. Skye was wearing completely new clothes, as her old ones were still in Loki's apartment and she had avoided revealing its location by telling them they always ever had teleported there.

Walking around a corner and into an alley they were chatting nicely. March wasn't as cold as February anymore so no thick scarfs were muffling the words. They just discussed the interesting topic of the best way to make an Earl Grey. Skye was explaining why it was best served with a drop of milk in it something or someone appeared behind her and held her mouth shut.

Turning her head slightly her eyes widened when she saw Loki's profile in her peripheral view. And he didn't look pleased at all. When his hand moved from her mouth to her throat and his grip tightened Steve only looked stunned, unsure what to do now that Skye's life was in danger. "I knew this was a bad idea." He muttered under his breath.

Next to her ear Skye heard the god's deep growl and a muttered "Didn't I promise to find you?"

_Thank you for reading :) Tell me what you thought!_

_Have a wonderful day people!_


	6. Chapter 6

_I did it! New chapter! The weekend was rather.. tiring but writing this I could relax a bit so please, enjoy :)_

Nobody moved, no sound could be heard. It was as if the time stood still. The only thing Skye really registered was the presence behind her. Looming. When she tried to move the slightest bit Loki's grip on her throat would tighten, effectively smothering and stilling her. He was angered, that was quite obvious, but was his rage focussed on Skye or on the Avengers?

"Did you really think I would just let you go? Let you betray me like all the others?" Even when the god only whispered his words had a highly daunting effect on the brunette. Trembling slightly Skye shook her head. "I didn't…" But he wouldn't just let her speak.

"Silence, _my dear_. We will talk later." Snaking his other arm around her waist Loki pulled Skye closer to his chest still not letting her breathe properly. _He would not hurt me. He would not hurt me. He would not hurt me. _Skye was thinking this over and over like a mantra until she was able to relax in his grip. Even in this situation she trusted the god. 'Why' she didn't really know. She just did.

In this moment Steve finally found his voice again after being too stunned by Loki's appearance to speak. "Let her go, Loki." The soldier was about to take a step forwards as Loki spoke again. "Do not move or I shall crush this mortal's neck."

"You wouldn't…."

"Are you sure, Captain?" Smirking he looked into Steve's blue eyes seeing the Captain's uncertainty. "I would not count on that."

"Where are Natasha and Clint?" He asked the god instead. Something must've happened, they wouldn't just do nothing with Loki suddenly appearing in the alley.

"They unfortunately fell asleep when I greeted them." The smirk reappeared on his face unsettling the soldier.

"What do you want?" Trying to appear confident, Steve hardened his tone.

"Is that not clear? I merely want to take this mortal with me and for you to leave me alone." Loki gave the captain a small smile as if trying to lure him into agreeing by looking nice.

"And what will you do to her if I let you go?"

"Rest assured, my dear Captain, no harm will come to this mortal as long as you do not try to do anything." Pulling Skye even closer to his chest he kept his eyes locked with the blue ones of the soldier.

"Do you swear that you won't hurt Skye or anyone else for that matter?" With a stern look on his face Steve tried to hide his uneasiness about the whole situation. Loki smiled and inclined his head in agreement. "Very wise of you Captain. Now if you excuse us we have important matters to discuss." And with that Loki and Skye disappeared, leaving an uncomfortable Captain America behind.

Steve just hoped that Stark and Banner's plan would work and began his search for the Widow and Hawkeye.

xXxXxXxXx

They reappeared in Loki's apartment. Loki still had his arms around Skye's waist but had let go of her throat much to the brunette's relief. They stood there for a while like that, in silence. But the atmosphere wasn't as tense as in the alley and Loki didn't seem menacing or angry anymore. His whole posture was rather relaxed now and his grip wasn't bruising anymore though still tight.

"Did you or did you not run from me?" After what seemed like an eternity the god finally broke the silence. Skye was stunned for a few moments by the uncertainty in Loki's voice. Did he actually care about that? When his grip tightened again Skye remembered that she had to answer his question and hastily replied. "No! I didn't."

"So you want to tell me you just went away from the campus with Captain America himself without noticing anything?" His arms loosened around Skye and Loki spun her around so she faced him. That way he could see the bright red blush on the girl's cheeks.

"I really didn't notice. I didn't even know that Captain America's real name was Steve or how he looks without his mask. You know I don't pay attention to such things… I'm so sorry…" And she was. Deeply so and it somehow hurt her to know that Loki was doubting her. Only when Skye felt the god's thumb on her cheek, swiping away a single tear, she registered that she was crying silently.

"But is that the truth?"

"Yes, of course!" Skye desperately wanted Loki to believe her, but how in the world could she proof what she said to be the truth?

"May I see that for myself?" He asked slowly, looking deeply into Skye's eyes. She just nodded not knowing what exactly he meant but willing to do whatever it would take. "You need to trust me for this. Do you trust me, Skye Holmes?" She nodded again. Being content with that answer Loki lay his fingertips gently onto Skye's temples, closing his eyes.

Suddenly she felt a presence in her mind. Strong and… warm. Was that Loki? _Yes, it is me._ Skye didn't really hear a voice speaking it was more like a feeling that these words are meant to be heard by her. This was something Skye had never felt in her life before but it didn't frighten her, as it probably should have.

_Now, show me your memory of what had occurred when they took you. _She did as asked. Thinking about last Friday all the memories replayed themselves like a movie in her head. Sitting in the lecture hall, Steve taking the seat next to her, their conversation, his offering to grab coffee and the sudden blank in which she had been unconscious. Then waking up in the strange room and the whole weekend at Avenger Tower.

Her brief interactions with Bruce Banner when he checked her for any injuries she might have brought upon herself by kicking the damn door of the damn room. Yes, she had been quite reckless in that tower. The discussion with Tony Stark about which Sherlock Holmes adaption was the best (Skye had rooted for the BBC series and Stark insisted about the one with the actor that looked so much like himself).

All the little things that happened, however, were overshadowed by her urge to get out of there and back to the apartment. It was rather strange for Skye to re-feel her own emotions and thoughts on top of seeing her own memories like a b-movie.

The whole tower-episode came across like a bad sitcom at some parts. Especially when Clint had tried to prank Tony and ended up with pink dyed hair and glitter all over himself. At last Skye watched herself talking Steve into letting her go to the lectures.

After he had seen enough, Loki pulled back his presence from the mortal's mind, leaving her with a hollow feeling and a strange dizziness.

"I'm so sorry…" Her legs giving in she sunk to the floor being caught only by Loki's arms that pulled the girl to the god's chest.

"I know, but I had to make sure. There is not a single person that never betrayed me or lied to me."

"I never would, I promise!" That answer came faster than Skye even recognised giving it. But she meant it so Loki only had to belief her. Instead of an answer he just pulled her into a hug, resting his left hand on her head and his right on her lower back. "We will see, love." For the first time since Skye knew the god of mischief a nickname he gave her did not sound sarcastic or teasing. This fact and Loki's presence itself made her smile broadly into his shirt.

xXxXxXxXx

When Steve had found Clint and Natasha they were laying on a rooftop nearby. Both assassin were asleep and well, just as Loki had claimed. The soldier waited for them to wake up and then explained what had happened while they were sleeping.

"So everything like Tony predicted?" Clint asked after Steve's summary.

"Yes, now we only have to hope that everything works or we just lost our one single connection to Loki."

"For now, we should head back to the tower." Natasha merely said and so the three did.

xXxXxXxXx

He had his mortal back. And she hadn't betrayed him. Loki wouldn't admit it but this simple truth made him happy. He also would never admit that he actually seemed to care for this mortal.

In the short time the mortal had lived with him she had never shown disgust or hatred towards him. Fear, yes, but that had disappeared quite quickly. It brought a warm feeling to the god to know that there was someone who didn't hate or despise him.

Loki looked at Skye standing in the kitchen. She had just set the table and now filled the plates with little sandwiches and scones. They had agreed to just have tea after all that happened as Skye said she didn't really feel like eating real dinner.

Loki moved to her side as she was about to pour the tea. Spinning her around she almost spilled the tea but somehow managed to keep all the liquid in the cups rather than on the floor or herself. She was about to complain when Loki closed her lips with his. _No complaints from this Skye Holmes it seems._

He was definitely more claiming now. A bit like a child and his toy, when someone dared to take it away they want it even more. "Stop thinking, love." Loki growled. She obviously had been away with the fairies again and his comment made her giggle into the kiss. The god pulled away looking annoyed. "You can be so infuriating, I believe we need to fix that, dear." The smirk that formed on his lips gave away his amusement though, so it can't have been _that_ annoying, right?

"I am most sorry to even dare to think in your presence." She joked. "I shall put all my effort into fixing this problem." Skye laughed softly at his amused look.

"Do not worry, love, for I shall solve the problem for you." And suddenly Skye felt the kitchen counter pressed into her back and Loki right in front of her, not even an inch between them. "I will not give you the chance to let your thoughts wander this time." Thus he initiated the most intense kiss Skye had ever experienced. One hand behind her neck and the other slung around her waist he gave her scarce to no space to move. So she just buried her hands into the front of his dark green button down.

Growling something that sounded like "You are mine." Loki deepened the kiss even more, now tracing Skye's lips with his tongue. Biting her lower lip softly the god sent a shiver down his mortal's spine making her grip on his shirt tighten even more. Neither of them cared if it would be all crumpled afterwards, anyway. They were completely absorbed in each other uncaring for the things that might or might not happen around them.

Their teacups still stood on the counter, abandoned and forgotten, a sad fate every cup has to endure once in a while. But you could hear the left cup silently swearing revenge for all the cold cups of tea in the world. Or maybe that was just a little too much fantasy in here.

xXxXxXxXx

Later they snuggled up on the couch (with freshly brewed tea) and each one a book in hands. It felt perfectly for Skye, just like before the Avengers had intruded her life. Turning the page however a thought crossed her mind. "What about my studies? Oh no, I still have one month left in this semester and I have to learn for the finals! I…"

"Shush."

"Do not 'shush' me, this is important!" Closing the book she turned her gaze to Loki. "What do I do? I hardly can just walk back to the campus."

"Didn't you hear me? I said 'shush'." Irritated as he was by this disruption of the silence, Loki didn't even lift his gaze from the book.

"I heard you quite well, but shushing does not solve my problem." With her insisting on this matter Loki finally looked at her and sighed heavily.

"There is no problem. I have visited all of your professors and asked for the last month's material. They handed it to me, so you can learn with that. To the finals I will personally escort you so we will not undergo former experiences."

"You… how?" Stunned by this revelation Skye couldn't really believe that her professors would just give him their material. She must've been wearing a rather incredulous expression as Loki saw it fit to explain himself further. "People do not call me _Silvertongue_ for no reason." And with an exasperated sigh he turned his attention back to his book, signalling that the conversation was over.

For a few minutes Skye was still sitting on the sofa with a dumbfounded expression, trying to comprehend what he just told her. She had all the material she needed for the finals. She could actually do this, finish this semester with an accomplishment rather than returning to London with a failure. Her expression suddenly changed from dumbfounded to overjoyed.

Feeling the urge to hug Loki she just did, which was rather awkward as she was sitting at the other end of the small sofa with her legs draped over Loki's but she couldn't care less. Loki himself, as it seemed, was rather surprised by her action, letting his book fall to the floor with a thud. "Oh, thank you! You are the best!"

"It is nothing, love. That was the least I owed you."

"No! That means a lot to me! You are… I mean… I…" she was getting quieter with each word until Loki could only hear a faint mumble that sounded like 'mawffu'.

"You really have to speak more clearly, I could hardly understand a word." The god tutted at her. Expecting a reply he didn't look away, staring intently at his mortal. "I… uh… _Iloveyou_." Hiding her blush behind her hands Skye tried to avoid Loki's gaze somehow being very embarrassed.

"And now slower." He chided again. Skye breathed slowly. Why was this so difficult?

Maybe because she never confessed her love to somebody before. Especially not a Norse god from a different planet who had tried to take over the planet with an alien army. Nonetheless, she couldn't back out now. "I… _loveyou_."

"Grant every word its own time and space to appeal. My, Miss Holmes, normally you are so good with words." He drawled, obviously enjoying the show.

Skye swallowed the lump in her throat and finally spoke loudly and clearly but with a little stammer. "I love you."

"Was that so difficult?" With his hand under her chin he lifted her head up to look her into the eyes again. "Kinda…"

"It is not." He merely stated.

"What?" Still deeply in thought Skye once again had lost the trace of the conversation she was the only other participant in.

"I love you." His hand was playing with a stray strand of Skye's long chocolate brown hair, twirling it between his long pale fingers.

"Yeah, now saying it just like that isn't difficult!" Pouting she crossed her arms over her chest. Sitting half on his lap turning away from the god was easier thought than done so Skye settled into turning her head away.

"But I mean it. I love you. I never would have thought myself to fall for a mortal like my oafish bro… like Thor, but, well, here I am." She looked back at him wondering if he spoke the truth. The stern and serious look on his face and the sincerity his eyes let show told Skye that the god of lies was, in fact, not lying at all. A warm feeling spread inside her and made her smile happily, sinking back into the hug. Softly this time.

Loki's gaze drifted away and to the floor. Curious Skye followed it and saw the book Loki was reading earlier lying down there. Holding her he wasn't able to reach down to get it, so Skye decided to do him the favour and pick it up for him. Just as she was about to pick the book up it vanished and the brunette could feel a hard object with a smooth surface on her back.

"Are you using me as a reading desk right now?"

"Me? I would never dream about that." His expression screamed _I'm innocent_ when Skye looked back up at him, the book was back at its former place on the floor. "Why did you reach down, dear?" He shot her the most innocent and most fake smile ever which she just commented with a snort. "God of mischief, indeed." Planting a kiss on his cheek she used his distraction to simultaneously whack Loki on the head with her own book, which had landed in her lap earlier.

"Are you sure you want to go down this road, Miss Holmes?" A mischievous grin accompanied his words. Skye grinned back, keen to stand up to his challenge. They stared at each other for a few moments, daring each other to do the make the first move.

Quickly Skye reached behind her back to grab a pillow but Loki was faster and pinned her to her back on the sofa. She still had the pillow in her hand though and started to hit his back with the fluffy thing. It had little to no effect and only caused the trickster to laugh, grabbing her pillow-hand and pinning it onto the sofa over her head, along with her other hand.

"Do not worry, little mortal, for I shall not hurt you." Again his lips formed a mischievous grin. "Much." Pressing his lips to her neck and nibbling lightly he coaxed a moan from his mortal. And so they went on, savouring each other's presence.

xXxXxXxXx

"You got the signal?"

"Yeah, birdbrain, everything's working just fine. Peachy. It's my own tech we're talking about!" Leaning back in his chair Tony let out an exasperated groan.

"Hence my question. Ouch! Alright, alright I'll shut up." After a hurting jab from Tony's elbow Clint finally gave in and left the genius alone.

"So buddies, we now have the exact position of Loki's little hideout!"

_Hope you enjoyed today's issue of my strange creativity :D_

_Have a wonderful day people!_


	7. Chapter 7

_Hey there again, guys. Brace yourself for the last chapter :) Have fun._

Again they were snuggled up on the sofa but this time Loki had fallen asleep first. His head lying on Skye's lap he peacefully rested there, his legs hanging over the armrest of the little sofa as he was simply too long to fit. Embracing the opportunity the brunette softly played with the god's soft black hair. While enjoying this tranquil time she was also highly jealous of the sheer softness of the strands. It was just unfair for him to have so wonderful hair while her own never did what she wanted and always looked kind of messy.

Loki stirred in his sleep so Skye lightly caressed his cheek. Mumbling contented he nestled into her palm and quietly continued his slumber. It was times like this that Skye could see him completely at ease, without the tenseness that normally could be seen in his features.

Skye just wanted to turn her attention back to the material for her finals as the wall right to her exploded. Shocked she turned her gaze towards the gaping hole where earlier that day had been a window. Hovering mid-air, palm still outstretched and blasters still slightly glowing, was Iron Man himself.

"Yup, we have reached our destination guys."

Loki suddenly bolted upright still a little hazy from his nap looking firstly at Skye and then at Iron Man still hovering at the hole. He was about to say something when lightning illuminated the night sky and the hulk landed with a roar right in front of an angry Loki and a confused Skye.

In a smooth movement Loki grabbed Skye and hauled her off the sofa, mere moments before the green beast smashed it to pieces. Holding her tightly to his chest they jumped out of the wall-hole and onto the street below. Landing they were already circled by the assassins, the Captain and Iron Man who had lowered himself to the ground. Skye didn't saw any possible escape. Loki however seemed to do as he grabbed her arm and, dodging a repulsor blast and an arrow, slipped through a gap in their formation.

Quickly retreating into an alleyway they suddenly stopped at a staple of cartons.

"Stay here, I will lead them away and when I'm finished I will come to get you. Do _not_ get yourself in trouble and do _not_ leave this place." She wanted to protest but the god cut her off with a kiss. Pulling away he shot her one last look before saying "Be safe, love" and disappearing around the corner

Looking after Loki's retreating form Skye's brain worked quickly and uncontrolled. There had to be something she could do. _Something. Something, something, something…_ And then she ran.

xXxXxXxXx

Spotting Loki in the middle of a street the Avengers engaged again. Thor descended from the sky with thunder and lightning accompanying him. Crashing onto the street in front of the trickster he send lightning in his direction. Loki, however, stepped aside smoothly, dodging the thunderer's attack and, using the attack as cover, sent the archer flying with a magical blast from his hand.

Spinning around to dodge another attack from Thor, Loki conjured five illusions of himself that swarmed out to distract the other Avengers. Thor's fist flew in Loki's direction again. And right through his head. The trickster had swapped places with one of the illusions.

After his shield flew through the illusion Captain America turned around to look for the real one. What he hadn't anticipated however was the blow that hit him from behind at that moment. He heard a cold laugh and turned again, using the speed to throw his shield at the god again. But again it went right through him. Steve silently cursed magic under his breath.

Changing places with the clone occupying Iron Man, Loki froze the joints of the metal suit stunning the hero for a moment until he managed to break the ice and move freely again. Loki felt two of his illusions being destroyed what side-tracked him for a moment giving Iron Man the chance to advance and fire his repulsors in the god's direction.

Dodging the attack Loki teleported himself behind Stark to throw a small knife into the vital parts of the suit. Black Widow however used that moment to jump on the god's back with the help of Captain America. The weight of the woman on his back destroyed his balance and together they fell to the ground.

While they exchanged hits Loki felt his other illusions being destroyed. In this moment Hulk emerged from the smoke of the destroyed buildings and lunged for the trickster. Grabbing the green cape he smashed Loki into the ground making him remember his last meeting with the green beast. This time, however, he wouldn't let himself be smashed into the ground. When the Hulk was about to grab the trickster again, Loki took a hold on the huge fist and, with the help of a little magic, threw the monster into a nearby building.

Thor and Hawkeye joined up with the rest of the team again and together they circled the god of mischief. Thor was swinging Mjolnir over his head, conjuring a thunder storm, while the rest launched attack after attack against Loki.

This time the thunder hit Loki square in the chest throwing him back and into a statue in the middle of a small plaza.

xXxXxXxXx

Standing upon the remnants of a statue in the streets of New York, Loki summoned shards of ice hovering in a circle around him. With a small flick of his hands he sent the shards flying in every direction around him, like bullets.

While the Avengers quickly found themselves cover against the attack Skye ran out of an alley and into the open to Loki's right.

xXxXxXxXx

Running towards Loki, Skye suddenly couldn't move closer. Something had stopped her midway and a strange cold feeling spread in her belly and shoulder. She looked down on her body, freezing. Sharp large pieces of ice had dug their way in the cold parts of her thin form, effectively stopping her movement by the sheer force that had powered them.

Hearing a cough to his right Loki turned his gaze, expecting to see one of earth's mightiest heroes who had been too slow to dodge the shards. Instead he looked right into dark brown eyes. The deer-in-the-headlights expression was back on Skye's face as she looked right back. Before she could fall to the ground he caught her, still looking deeply into her eyes.

"I… I'm… sorry, Loki…" Coughing the words were merely understandable but they sent grief throughout the tricksters whole being.

"Why would you be sorry, for I am the one who hurt you?" Being so shocked Loki just said the first thing that had come to his mind.

"I… I left. I wanted to… to help. But look what I did… instead. You had t… to sto… p your a….ttack and…" She coughed again and just pointed to a place behind Loki. Turning his head he saw the Avengers, weapons on the god, but every one of them wore an expression of shock and grief on their face.

"Brother…" Thor began but he was quickly silenced by Natasha.

Loki sunk to the ground, his mortal still in his arms. He could feel her growing weaker every second and knew that there was nothing to be done for her. The god hold the mortal in his arms while quietly speaking soothing words to her as she began to shiver. Blood was oozing out of the wounds from the shards, covering her and Loki's clothes in a dark red colour.

"I'm here, love. Be calm." He stroke her cheek with his thumb and cradled her in his arms. The heroes could only stand and stare, unable to help. Even the Hulk was silently watching. He knew that this time a simple loud roar wouldn't save the day.

Captain America didn't know where to look. His instincts screamed that he had to help, but he was a soldier not a doctor and the Hulk didn't seem to turn back to Banner any time soon.

Despite Hawkeye's hate for the trickster god the archer couldn't help but feel sorry. For both of them. Natasha gave him a sideway glance, staring long and intently. Although sporting an expressionless face as always her eyes told him that she felt the same.

Even if nobody could see Tony's face behind his mask his face mirrored those around him. This hasn't been the girl's fight but even though she was the one to pay the price. It wasn't fair at all. "Sir, your heart rate is over the norm, you should consider to…" Tony's AI began to warn him, but Tony interrupted. "Shut up, J. Not the moment."

Thor's expression was the most suffering of all the Avengers. It didn't matter that he had fought Loki fiercely only moments before, seeing his little brother suffer this way broke the thunderer's heart. Especially as this was what he feared would one day happen to Jane Foster, he badly wanted to comfort Loki.

Nobody talked for some minutes until the sound of a quinjet filled the air. Looking at the sky the Avengers saw a S.H.I.E.L.D. jet descending to the ground and landing only a few feet away from the scenery. Eight agents along with Maria Hill and Nick Fury himself left the aircraft and marched towards the heroes.

"Rogers! You got him?" Fury bellowed as soon as he stood in front of the captain.

"Sir, we… there has been a casualty." Steve kept his gaze on the ground.

"Well, what exactly happened here? Barton? Romanoff?" He looked from one agent to the other, impatiently waiting for an answer. After another brief moment Clint offered one. "We were fighting Loki when the hostage got caught by an attack. She is dead." The archer pointed in the direction where Loki still held Skye in his arms. She wasn't dead though. Even if very weakly, her heart still beat. The god was still rocking her softly in his arms.

"Stop staring and get him the fuck on the Helicarrier. We can't have him on the streets of New York _again_!" The director motioned for his agents to do as they were told. Advancing the trickster, however, they were thrown back by an invisible force.

Nick Fury normally wasn't a short-tempered person but this was just too ridiculous for him. He aimed his gun at Loki, ready to shoot. It was a prototype enhanced with Tesseract technology and able to hurt even the Asgardians, or so the scientists of S.H.I.E.L.D. hoped. Before Fury could do anything else though, Thor got in his way.

"Do not dare to interfere in their farewell, Nick Fury!" The god's voice thundered over the battlefield making everyone stare at him as he stood before the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. defending his little brother.

"You are aware that this is a war criminal on the loose? A threat to earth that needs to be taken care of? Now step aside, or I will make you!" The director thundered back. Now it was Steve's turn to interfere before another fight could break loose. "Both of you calm down! Thor talk to Loki, if he comes with us voluntarily we won't shoot. If not, I'm sorry, but we won't have another choice. Both Fury and Thor nodded in agreement and the latter made his way towards his little brother.

"Loki?" Thor asked quietly, kneeling down next to him. The younger god turned his gaze towards his older brother. "What?" The answer was quiet and without hate or anger. It was bare of any emotion whatsoever, which worried the thunderer, but he had to follow the plan. "Nick Fury has a weapon aimed at you brother, but if you come with us he will not shoot. Nobody will hurt you, I promise." Loki looked away and at Skye's still face again. He sighed heavily and nodded in defeat. "Fine."

The Asgardians stood up and walked over to the Avengers and the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. Loki still held the girl close to him.

Watching the trickster carefully, Fury eyed the still form of the student suspiciously. "That the casualty you were talkin' about, Captain?"

"Yes sir. Her name is Skye Holmes and she is a student at NYU." The soldier answered loyally. One agent motioned to take her away from Loki but before he could even process what happened the agent flew straight into a brick wall. After that nobody attempted to separate them.

On the flight to the Helicarrier Skye woke up one more time. Looking puzzled she weakly asked what had happened. "It is alright, you are safe now, love. Be calm and try not to strain yourself." After a brief moment she nodded. "Okay. Thank you… Loki?" The god locked his gaze with hers signalling for her to go on. "I love you…" Skye gave him a weak smile but it was obvious that all her emotions had been put in it.

"I love you too." He answered and planted a soft kiss on her forehead. She sighed contentedly and closed her eyes. He ran his hand over her hair knowing that everyone on this bloody airship watched him. Loki felt her heart beat one last time. There was only silence left now.

xXxXxXxXx

Once again he stood in his prison in Asgard's dungeon. Alone. The only comfort he could get were Frigga's visits but those became scarcer over time. She had asked what had happened on Midgard more than one time, but Loki didn't want to talk about it. He didn't want to tell his mother how he had killed the one he loved. The only person who had ever treated him without prejudice or suspicion.

As he stood there, staring into nothingness, the convergence came closer to bring further grief for the young prince.

_So.. that's that. Thank you all for reading! I would be mostly happy about a review :)_

_Have a wonderful day!_


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